My Genealogy Roots — Roots Expert

How they can help

Remote research

APG member

Researches in: United States · Oklahoma
Based in: United States · Oklahoma
Languages: English

About

Michelle Bates is a professional genealogist specializing in probate heir research for law firms and family history research for clients. She began researching in 1993, left corporate America in 2019 to pursue genealogy professionally, and holds education from Boston University and genealogy institutes.

Michelle (Custer) Bates is the owner and researcher at My Genealogy Roots. She started researching family history in 1993 and fell in love with solving the puzzle of genealogical research. In 2019, she left corporate America to become a professional genealogist, pursuing formal education at Boston University, through professional groups, genealogy institutes, and conferences. She is the creator and host of The Criminal Genealogist podcast and taught her first course on Criminal Records in Spring 2023 with the Applied Genealogical Institute. Her business focuses on probate heir research for law firms, family history research for individual clients, speaking engagements on genealogy topics, and creating on-demand courses about researching criminal ancestors. She volunteers as a board member for the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) and a committee member for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG).

Specialties

probate heir research
family history research
criminal ancestors
criminal records
affidavits of heirship
genealogical research

Additional credentials

Education at Boston University; Applied Genealogical Institute instructor; The Criminal Genealogist podcast creator; Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG)